OPPONENTS AT A GLANCEPHOENIX COYOTES: Record: 21-13-2, 44 pts. (Pacific Division: 3rd place)… Head Coach: Dave Tippett… The Coyotes are among NHL leaders in goals-against (2.28) and penalty killing (83.5 pct.)… Phoenix has gone 8-2-1 in its last 11 games… Players to Watch: G Ilya Bryzgalov (19-10-2, 2.08 GAA, .924 SV%, 4 SO in 31 games)… RW Radim Vrbata (leads club with 11-9-20 in 36 games)… LW Shane Doan (has 8-12-20 in 36 games)… Jackets vs. Coyotes: 12-17-6 (7-9-2 at home, 5-8-4 on the road)… Columbus had gone 5-2-1 vs. Phoenix between 2006-08 before being swept in the four-game season series a year ago… The Jackets won the first meeting this season, 2-0, on Oct. 10 behind Mathieu Garon's 36-save shutout in his CBJ debut… The Coyotes earned a 4-1 win on Oct. 28 and a 2-1 SO win on Dec. 17 at Nationwide Arena.

DALLAS STARS: Record: 15-9-11, 41 pts. (Pacific Division: 4th place)… Head Coach: Marc Crawford… The Stars are 2-1-4 in their last seven games, including a 4-3 win over Detroit on Dec. 19, heading into Monday's game vs. San Jose… Players to Watch: C Brad Richards (leads club with 10-29-39 in 33 games)… LW Loui Eriksson (has 11-21-32 in 35 games)… LW James Neal (has 16-14-30 in 31 games)… Jackets vs. Stars: 9-19-5 (4-9-3 at home, 5-10-2 on the road)… The Jackets have gone 7-3-4 vs. the Stars since Apr. 18, 2006… Prior to that, Columbus was 2-16-1 in the series… The Jackets were 1-1-2 vs. the Stars last season… The Jackets won the first meeting this season, 4-1, at Dallas on Nov. 19.

DETROIT RED WINGS: Record: 18-13-5, 41 pts. (Central Division: 3rd place)… Head Coach: Mike Babcock… Detroit had won four-straight prior to suffering a 4-3 loss at Dallas on Dec. 19 and 3-0 at Chicago on Dec. 20… Detroit is currently missing regulars Henrik Zetterberg, Johan Franzen, Valtteri Filppula, Jason Williams, Dan Cleary, Niklas Kronwall and Andreas Lilja due to injury… Players to Watch: C Pavel Datsyuk (7-18-25 in 33 games)… LW Tomas Holmstrom (12-6-18 in 35 games)… D Nicklas Lidstrom (has 1-11-12 in 35 games)… Jackets vs. Red Wings: 14-30-8 (8-13-6 at home, 6-17-2 on the road)… The Jackets have gone 8-10-1 in the last 19 regular season meetings… The teams split the six regular season meetings in 2008-09 with each notching two wins at home and one on the road… Detroit swept Columbus 4-0 in the first round of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs… The Red Wings won the first meeting this season, 9-1, at Nationwide Arena on Nov. 11.

ALL THE JACKETS WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS ANOTHER LATE-DECEMBER TURNAROUND Heading into a stretch where the club plays seven games between now and New Year's Eve, the Blue Jackets are looking to snap out of a month-long stretch that has seen them go 2-9-5 since Nov. 21. The club has gone eight-straight road games without a win (0-6-2) since a 4-1 win at Dallas on Nov. 19, which was the club's third-straight road win at that time. The current road drought comes one-year after a similar stretch that saw the Jackets go 0-6-1 from Nov. 28-Dec. 20, 2008. The club responded by winning five of the next seven away from home and went 12-8-4 in its final 24 road contests. Columbus' overall record on Dec. 23, 2008 was 14-16-4 following a 3-0 loss vs. Los Angeles. From that point on, the club posted a 27-15-6 mark en route to its first Stanley Cup Playoffs appearance.

UMBERGER CONTINUES TO BE A BRIGHT SPOT LW R.J. Umberger has scored goals in three of the last five games and has tallied 8-7-15 in his last 16 games. After tallying 4-7-11 in his first 20 games, he has raised his season totals to 12-14-26 in 36 games. He is on pace to score 27 goals and 59 points this season, which would be new career highs. He scored 26 goals with the Jackets a year ago and tallied 50 points with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2007-08.

CHIMERA CONTINUES TO PRODUCE OFFENSIVELY LW Jason Chimera has collected points in six of the past nine games, tallying 4-3-7 during that span. He scored goals in three-straight games from Dec. 3-9, which snapped a streak of 12-straight games without a point, and has now collected points in three of his past four games (1-2-3). He's pushed his season totals to 8-9-17 in 36 games.

NEWS & NOTES The Blue Jackets boast the NHL's top power play unit, converting 23.6 pct. (33-of-140)… Columbus has scored two or more power play goals in nine games this season compared to six times during the 2008-09 season… G Mathieu Garon, who has stopped 84-of-90 shots (.933 save pct.) in his last three appearances, is two wins shy of 100 wins in his NHL career (98-86-15)… LW Fredrik Modin picked up an assist on Jason Chimera’s goal at Colorado on Dec. 19 to register his first point of the season in his fifth game since returning from injury.

BLUE JACKETS' "12 GAMES OF CHRISTMAS" GIVEWAYS The Columbus Blue Jackets will be spreading holiday cheer to fans by giving away one prize package everyday for 12 days in the 12 Games of Christmas giveaway. The giveaway began Dec. 14 and continues through December 25. For a complete list of each day's prizes and to register, click on http://bluejackets.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=59314. The winners will be contacted at 11 a.m. each day, unless otherwise noted.

JACKETS, ATLAS BUTLER GIVING A LUCKY FAN A FURNACE, TWO SEASON TICKETS The Blue Jackets and Atlas Butler are giving fans the chance to win a new high-efficiency furnace, two 2010-11 season tickets and an autographed jersey. To enter, fans can click on www.bluejackets.com/contests. All registrants will receive a free furnace safety inspection courtesy of Atlas Butler and have a chance to purchase discounted tickets to select games through February. Fans can also register in-arena during home games on Jan. 2 and Jan. 16.

SEVERAL CBJ NEW YEAR'S EVE PACKAGES AVAILABLEThe Blue Jackets have several packages available for their New Year's Eve game vs. the Nashville Predators including:New Year's Eve Family Fun Pack – This enhanced edition of the Dispatch Family Value Pack starts at $25 per person and includes a game ticket, Sugardale hot dog, Pepsi, popcorn, UDF ice cream cone voucher and free admission to the Stinger’s New Year’s Eve Family Skate presented by 10TV at the Dispatch Ice Haus from 4-7 p.m. In addition to the pre-game open skate, families will enjoy hot chocolate and cookies and a visit by some animals from the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium from 4-5 p.m. Finally, all kids will also receive a street hockey stick.

Crowne Plaza Downtown New Year's Eve Hockey Package – This features a pair of lower bowl tickets to the game, valet parking at the hotel, champagne toast at midnight, overnight accommodations and a New Year's Day Breakfast Buffet. The Crowne Plaza Downtown is located just two blocks from Nationwide Arena. Packages start at $279. To order, call the hotel at (614) 461-2642.

Blue Jackets/Hyatt Regency New Year's Eve Party Combo – This package includes a game ticket and post-game party at the Hyatt Regency. Guests must be age 21 and over. The party includes access to all entertainment areas, beverages, hors d'oeuvres and champagne toast at midnight. Entertainment includes 17th Floor, Soul Kitchen, Lt. Dan’s New Legs, Basic Rock Outfit, DJ Marino, Monaco, Chris Logsdon, The Fabulous Johnson Brother, Reaganomics, DJ Ant and Eldorado Karaoke. Upper bowl ticket and party admission is $145. Lower bowl ticket and party admission is $169. To order, call the hotel at (614) 463-1234.

Rush CBJ presented by easyColumbus.com – A limited number of Rush CBJ student seats are available for advance purchase. Advance orders placed through BlueJackets.com will include a Blue Jackets long sleeve T-shirt. Offer is good for the first 500 tickets sold. A valid student ID must be presented at the box office the night of the game to receive tickets and T-shirts.

"SUBWAY® FRESH SEATS" OFFERS 4 SUBS, 4 STUBS Fans visiting participating central Ohio SUBWAY® locations can take advantage of the "4 Subs, 4 Stubs" promotion that provides all those who purchase four foot-long subs in one transaction a voucher redeemable for four select Blue Jackets tickets for just $5 each and four Blue Jackets/SUBWAY co-branded T-shirts. SUBWAY Fresh Seats are available for the following games: Mar. 2 vs. Vancouver and Mar. 15 vs. Edmonton. There are only 250 Fresh Seats available for each designated game. When the allotted tickets are gone, the voucher may be used as a $5 discount on select area tickets. This offer is redeemable only at the Nationwide Arena Ticket Office and fans may visit www.bluejackets.nhl.com/freshseats to check ticket availability in advance.

BLUE JACKETS, LABATT BLUE INTRODUCE "1000 TICKET GIVEAWAY"The Blue Jackets and Labatt Blue are kicking off their new corporate partnership and the 2009-10 season with the Labatt Blue "1000 Ticket Giveaway," which rewards 500 lucky fans with a pair of tickets to an upcoming Blue Jackets game. Fans will find specially-marked 12-bottle packs of Labatt Blue and Labatt Blue Light at participating grocery and convenience stores across central Ohio. Each will contain a unique personal identification number (PIN) and instructions to visit the contest website, www.labattblueus.com/bluejackets to complete the online entry form. A total of 500 instant winners will be randomly selected through Dec. 31, 2009. The sweepstakes is open only to legal US residents in the state of Ohio who are 21 years of age or older. No purchase is necessary to enter or win. For complete rules, visit the contest website above.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONSMonday, Dec. 28 vs. Detroit –BLUE JACKETS CALENDAR GIVEWAY COURTESY OF SUBWAY: The first 15,000 fans in attendance with receive a free Blue Jackets 2010 calendar courtesy of Subway… ALL YOU CAN EAT PACK presented by Time Warner Cable: This pack includes a game ticket to the exclusive AAA Sky Terrace and an all you can eat buffet of hot dogs, chicken fingers, popcorn, peanuts, Pepsi and more for just $39... DISPATCH FAMILY VALUE PACK: This special pack includes a game ticket, hot dog, popcorn, Pepsi, a voucher for UDF ice cream and Dispatch Ice Haus skate pass for just $25 per person.

BLUE JACKETS VIEWING LOCATIONS Fans can follow the Jackets on television throughout the 2009-10 season at a number of official viewing locations. This select group of restaurants and bars will offer a unique atmosphere for fans gathering to watch the Blue Jackets, along with tickets, T-shirts and poster giveaways. Also, each of the 10 partners will host one exclusive viewing party that will be highlighted by the presence of Blue Jackets personalities and include additional giveaways. Visit www.BlueJackets.nhl.com/viewinglocations for complete information on all viewing locations and register to win one grand prize – four season tickets for the 2010-11 season and one team autographed pub mirror.

BLUE JACKETS ON THE RADIO The Ken Hitchcock Show with the Blue Jackets head coach and FOX Sports Ohio play-by-play man Jeff Rimer airs on WBNS Sports Radio 97.1 The Fan on Wednesdays from 6 to 7 p.m… Breakfast with the Blue Jackets can be heard on the Blue Jackets Radio Network and Sports Radio 97.1 The Fan on Sundays from 10 to 11 a.m. with hosts Mark Wyant and members of the Blue Jackets broadcast team.

BLUE JACKETS ONLINE/SOCIAL MEDIA Fans can follow the Blue Jackets online, watch game highlights, press conferences and exclusive behind-the-scenes video content on Jackets TV at the newly re-designed BlueJackets.com. Fans can also get up-to-the-minute news and stories by following the Blue Jackets on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BlueJacketsNHL. Become a fan on the club’s official Facebook ® page to get the latest club news and promotions, videos, photos, updates and interact with other Blue Jackets fans at www.facebook.com/OfficialColumbusBlueJackets.

TICKET INFORMATIONSingle Game: Tickets are on sale now at the Nationwide Arena Ticket Office, FOX Sports Ohio Blue Line Team Stores at the Chiller Easton, Chiller Dublin, Chiller North and the Mall at Tuttle Crossing, all Ticketmaster Ticket Centers, by phone at (800) 745-3000 or online at BlueJackets.com and Ticketmaster.com… Season & Group Tickets: For information on season tickets, six-game, 10-game and 20-game plans and group tickets, call (614) 246-PUCK or (800) NHL-COLS… Huntington Green Seats: A minimum of 250 tickets are available for just $10 at the Nationwide Arena Box Office two hours prior to every home game… Rush CBJ presented by easyColumbus Student Tickets: College students with a valid, full-time student I.D. can purchase two tickets in select lower level ($25) and upper level ($15) seats beginning one hour before game time at the Nationwide Arena Ticket Office as part of the club's Rush CBJ program. Seat locations are subject to availability.